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PRESS RELEASE October 20, 2007 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For Additional Information: Peter Sigmann (920) 824-5193 info@DCPhospateFree.org Ralph Valatka (920) 743-5094 shadynook@doorpi.net Environmental Group Publishes County Waters Phosphate Monitoring Results The Partnership for Phosphate Reduction, a county-wide network of environmental groups and property owner associations, announced the results today from four months of monitoring phosphate levels in Door County waters. As expected, their study of 80 sites around the peninsula showed dramatic increases in phosphate levels in July with a gradual declining of the levels during the fall. Volunteers from the nine partnering groups joined by the UW Oshkosh beach testing team began measuring phosphate levels on beaches, piers and streams in the spring in order to develop a base-line for comparison against measurements that will be made in future years. The complete results of the last four month's measurements have been published at the group's web site www.DCPhosphateFree.Org and are available to download. The data, available in both chart and table formats, is free of charge. It's the group's hope that as more people become better informed about the county's high phosphate level problem, they will help to solve it. The readings revealed very high levels of phosphates in all Door County waters. Project coordinator Peter Sigmann, of Little Sturgeon, summarized, "Most readings remain up to 10 times the concentration required for good lake health, but residents are becoming more aware of the phosphate-cladophora connection." Cladophora, the stinky green algae that has been washing up on shorelines everywhere in recent years, is literally fed by the overload of phosphates in the waters. "Much of this is unavoidable," continued Sigmann, "but everyone can can make a big differences by using phosphate-free automatic dishwashing detergents and lawn fertilizers." The highest levels of phosphate in the county were found within a half-mile of the Sturgeon Bay sewage treatment plant. The peaking of phosphate levels during the summer months may "suggest that our increase in population during the summer may contribute to increased phosphate loading." Elsewhere it's been estimated that up to 30% of sewage phosphate comes from automatic dishwashing detergents, the most popular of which contains 8.7% phosphorous. Phosphate can also run off of lawns after fertilizer application into storm sewers, creeks and ultimately our lakes and bays. As lawns do not require phosphorus for their fertilization, the other step residents can take is to switch to a fertilizer that is marked with a "zero" as the center number of the three number code that denotes the fertilizer's composition. "People should look for bags and boxes marked like 30-0-5," said Sigmann, "as long as the middle number is zero, that product will put no phosphates into our waters." Both phosphate free dishwasher detergent and lawn fertilizers are available at a number of retail outlets in Door County and are listed on the group's web site, as are several online sources for the products. "Consumer demand should also help increase the availability of phosphate-free products too," suggested Sigmann. The group will continue to monitor and publish phosphate levels at all sites for a second year, with hopes of seeing some reductions in phosphate levels resulting from their efforts. They expect that as phosphate levels drop, so will the growth of the "green stuff." Members of the group include: Bay Shore Property Owners Association, Door County Environmental Council, Door Property Owners, Friends of Toft Point, Glidden Drive Association, League of Women Voters, Little Sturgeon Area Property Owners Association, 1000 Friends of Wisconsin and the Whitefish Bay Association. The Partnership for Phosphate Reduction welcomes additional organizations and individuals to take part in their effort. For further information contact Peter Sigmann at (920) 824-5193 or at info@DCPhospateFree.org via email. TO VIEW THE GRAPHS AND TABLES CLICK HERE. |
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We are a voluntary coalition
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